5 Things You Might Not Know About Stuart Austin

Meeting lofty expectations with consistent performance has proven elusive for Stuart Austin.

The Team Titan standout will open his 2022 campaign in the Professional Fighters League when he meets defending heavyweight champion Bruno Henrique Cappelozza in the PFL 2 headliner on Thursday at Esports Stadium Arlington in Arlington, Texas. Austin, 34, has won three of his past five bouts. However, he finds himself on the rebound following a 31-second knockout loss to Renan Ferreira at PFL 8 on Aug. 19—the quickest defeat of the Englishman’s 22-fight career.

As Austin approaches his confrontation with the surging Cappelozza, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He made sure to arm himself.

Austin holds the rank of black belt in judo and owns multiple national championships in the discipline. His expertise has made him a potent finisher in mixed martial arts, where he has delivered 12 of his 15 career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission.

2. Momentum was once on his side.

“He-Man” made his professional MMA debut at the age of 22 when he buried Kurt Crowhurst with punches in just 72 seconds at an Ultimate Impact show in August 2010. Austin started his career with eight consecutive wins, seven of them finishes. However, he owns a middling 7-7 record since.

3. He boasts previous big-league experience.

Austin enjoyed a cup of coffee with Bellator MMA, going 1-1 with the company. He submitted Craig Hudson with a first-round rear-naked choke at Bellator 119 on May 9, 2014, then found himself on the receiving end of a third-round knockout from Dan Charles at Bellator 126 on Sept. 26, 2014.

4. Jewelry piques his interest.

The British judoka has already held titles in the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts and Elite MMA Championship organizations. Austin captured the vacant BAMMA Lonsdale heavyweight crown when he punched out Thomas Denham in the second round of their BAMMA 23 pairing in 2015 and took home the vacant EMC heavyweight championship when he was awarded a five-round unanimous decision over onetime Olympic gold medalist Satoshi Ishii at EMC 5 in 2020.

5. His spotty resume carries some substance.

Austin remains the only man to have finished Tom Aspinall, as he submitted the current Ultimate Fighting Championship contender with a heel hook in the second round of their BAMMA 21 encounter in June 2015. Aspinall has since ridden a 5-0 record inside the Octagon to a No. 6 ranking in the UFC heavyweight division.